Aftermath
by Jayie The Hufflepuff
Summary: A Night Vale fanfiction. WARNING, SPOILERS FOR EPISODE 43, "THE VISITOR" After the events of "The Visitor," Cecil visits Khoshekh in the hospital, and an unexpected visitor drops by. One-shot.
1. Cecil

Cecil had wanted so badly to go with Khoshekh to the animal hospital, to be there for him the whole time, but unfortunately duty called. The show wasn't over yet. His cat may need him, but his listeners were waiting, and he was nothing if not professional.

The minute the show was over, he hurried out to his car and booked it over to the hospital as quickly as he could. Khoshekh was in one of many cages when he got there, sitting between a parrot with glowing green eyes and something that vaguely resembled a pine-cone with several, spider-like eyes. Cecil hardly spared him a glance. All he could see was Khoshekh, his poor, poor Khoshekh. The cat was awake, but barely so. He blinked slowly, staring at Cecil dull, groggy eyes. He didn't even seem to have the strength to lift his head. Bandages were wrapped around his side and limbs, leaving hardly any of his fur peeking out. Somehow, seeing him covered in bandages, lying on the blanket in his cage instead of hovering four feet off the ground, made him seem so much smaller.

Cecil could feel a lump forming in his throat. He crouched down by the cage, voice cracking slightly as he said, Khoshekh lifted his head slightly at the sound of Cecil's voice, wobbling slightly. The cat let out a weak purr. It was barely audible, nothing like the demonic, shrieking cry he usually gave. It tore at Cecil's heart to hear it.

He reached two fingers through the thin metal bars of the cage, wiggling them slightly. The cat slowly lifted his head, sniffing at Cecil's fingers with a dry, cold nose. The barely audible purring continued as he rubbed his cheek weakly against Cecil's fingers. Cecil began scratching the cat very gently on the cheek, afraid to hurt him further. Khoshekh seemed so fragile in front of him. Something warm burned in the back of Cecil's eyes. He never thought he'd see Khoshekh anywhere other than floating four feet above the ground in the men's restroom. Everything about this was wrong, and he didn't have a clue how to fix it.

he said quietly, his voice catching at the end. This was his fault. If he hadn't led that... _thing_ into the bathroom, then Khoshekh wouldn't have gotten hurt. He should've realized, he should've... He didn't know. All he knew was that Khoshekh nearly died, and it was all his fault. Tears were falling freely now, but he hardly noticed. He just stayed crouched by Khoshekh's cage, gently stroking the cat with two fingers through the bars of the cage.

Cecil wasn't sure how long he'd been crouching there. His legs were growing stiff from staying in that position so longer, and his fingers were starting to go numb. He had no thoughts of moving until he heard that voice behind him.

He started, turning around in surprise. The scientist was standing in the frame of the door, dressed in a professional-looking lab coat that had a couple of stains on it. It looked like he'd come to the hospital straight from work. Cecil started to stand, but Khoshekh let out a plaintive _mew_ when he started to move his hand away, so he just stayed awkwardly crouching, one hand on the cage. He used the other to hastily wipe the tears from his face.

Carlos was leaning against the door frame with his shoulder, his hands stuffed in the pockets of his labcoat. His hair was slightly mussed, and one sleeve was pushed up to the elbow, probably for some experiment or other, but he still looked absolutely perfect. the scientist explained softly. His voice was different from the oaky, caramel tones that he'd had when Cecil had first met him, but this voice was just as beautiful to Cecil as the last.

was all Cecil could manage in response. He couldn't think of anything else to say.

Carlos peered past Cecil, into the cage. he asked abruptly, his tone deliberately lighter.

Cecil nodded, trying to keep his voice composed.

The scientist crossed the room, crouching beside Cecil. Khoshekh glanced at him, eyes narrowing, head wobbling uncertainly. He didn't seem to know whether to trust this new man. Carlos's expression was soft with sympathy, his voice gentle as he said, His gaze darted over the cat's injuries, expression growing graver. Cecil didn't want to know what his scientific mind was calculating about Khoshekh's chances.

He cleared his throat, loudly. Anything to break the silence. The radio host reached for his boyfriend's hand, guiding it to the cage. They both reached their fingers through the bars. he encouraged. Khoshekh watched them for a moment, eyes narrowed, before reaching out delicately with his muzzle, nose sniffing cautiously. He flinched slightly when his nose touched Carlos's fingers, but after a moment of deliberation, he seemed to decide that Carlos was alright. The cat rubbed his cheek against the new man's fingers, purring weakly.

The lump in Cecil's throat hardened. This wasn't how Carlos's first meeting with Khoshekh was supposed to go. This wasn't how anything was supposed to go. His poor Khoshekh.

Carlos's gaze slid from Khoshekh to the side, growing soft with sympathy as he noticed Cecil's expression. he said quietly. Without warning, he reached out with one arm and wrapped it around Cecil's shoulders, pulling him into a tight hug. Cecil stiffened a bit in surprise. Carlos wasn't one for public displays of affection, more out of his own shyness than anything. After a few moments of surprise, he melted into his boyfriend's embrace, one hand with fingers still curled around the bars of the cage, the other wrapped around Carlos's back, clutching at a handful of labcoat as he sobbed into Carlos's shoulder. The scientist made soothing humming noises as he held Cecil, his hand gently rubbing Cecil's back. The radio host knew how pathetic he must look right now, but he couldn't really bring himself to care. The fear and grief he'd held in while he was wrapping up the show all spilled out now, leaving him a sobbing, trembling mess. He'd almost lost his Khoshekh today. Somehow, it felt like there was more loss ahead. Things had changed in Night Vale, and Khoshekh getting hurt was just the tip of the iceburg. Everything felt uncertain. For a moment, he let himself just cry and feel that fear and uncertainty, and grief for the cat in front of him.

After a few minutes, his sobs began to subside, and the hard lump in his throat began to soften. But he didn't pull back from Carlos's embrace. Instead he just rested there, his cheek resting against Carlos's shoulder. he said quietly. He hadn't realized how much he'd needed Carlos there until he'd showed up. Over the last year, Carlos had become his other half. They depended on each other. Just seeing him here, being in his arms, made him feel less lost and helpless.

Carlos said quietly, almost too soft for Cecil to hear. But he did. And it made him smile to hear it. Somehow, just hearing a little thing like that made it seem like things were going to be okay. Together, they could get through this. Carlos's hand reached for the one Cecil had resting on the cage, his warm, calloused fingers curling around Cecil's. The gesture felt strong. It felt defiant in the face of whatever might come next. Cecil had a feeling he would need that strength, for himself, and for Khoshekh. Khoshekh purred again, and this time it was a little louder, sounding more like a soul screaming in torment than the weak sound it had been moments before. It sounded like hope for things to get better.

* * *

Please don't judge me for this. It's 2 AM, I wrote this pretty quickly and late at night, so... yeah.

After the last episode, I just had to write this. Poor Khoshekh! I was nearly crying after that episode. Cecil just sounded so scared for his cat. He'd been described as the station cat before, but now there's really no doubt that he's Cecil's cat. It was both heartwarming and heartbreaking.

By the way, for those who read my story "The Soldier Who Stayed," hi, sorry about not updating, but I recently discovered Night Vale and it's kinda distracted me and swallowed up all my time. Sorry about that. I'll try to update soon.


	2. Carlos

The radio hummed in the background of the lab, as familiar to the scientists now as the _clinking_ of glass beakers and the general bubbling of various chemicals. As he observed a beaker full of a liquid that seemed to change colors every few seconds, Carlos could hear his boyfriend's voice detailing the news of the day. The radio host's voice seemed to have gone up several octaves as he described the adorable... whatever that was in his booth. Even as he worked, Carlos allowed himself a fond, amused smile. Cecil hated it when he called him "adorable," but really, the term fit, especially now.

"_They then retreated quietly back to the lab._" Carlos carefully began to tip a test tube full of a clear acid-like liquid into the beaker of color-changing chemical.

"_Ow-OW! Gah-OW!_" Carlos froze, as did every other scientist in the room. Wordlessly, the one nearest the radio cranked up the volume so they could all hear better. "_Listeners, I think I've been... bitten by this thing. Oh... oh god... I can see blood... get off. Get off! Ow!_" By now, the test tube had slipped, and the acid was pouring straight onto the desk. It began to eat into the surface, leaving a wide, gaping hole the desk. No one noticed.

"_I need to go wash this. Let's go now a word from our sponsor._" As an unfamiliar voice began reciting the day's ad, Carlos moved the test tube, setting it shakily aside. Cecil wouldn't want him barging in in the middle of his show just because of one little leg bite. As soon as the show was over, he could leave. He'd make sure Cecil was okay. He'd just have to wait.

The ad dragged on for what felt like ages. The rest of Carlos's team glanced worriedly between him and the radio, but Carlos was staring determinedly at the beaker, which was now quivering slightly and turning violent shades of red and black. Cecil would be fine. He was sure of it.

The ad finally ended, and the sound quality dropped sharply as Cecil's voice cracked through the speakers. "_Listeners, I'm on my cell phone, calling from the men's bathroom. I had Intern Jeremy patch me into the board so I can still broadcast._" Something in Carlos's chest loosened, and he felt a sort of airy rush of relief at the sound of his voice. Cecil was okay. Shaken, but okay.

That relief faded as Cecil continued, "_That... _thing _tried to follow me in here as I limped down the hall. I was able to outrun it, but I've had to use the deadbolt on the bathroom door to keep it out._" Carlos's heart froze. That thing was still after Cecil.

He tried to keep working, ignoring the pointed glances from a few of the other scientists. His resolve lasted roughly until a loud banging noise sounded, along with Cecil crying, "_The door's come off its hinges!_"

Without a word, Carlos set down his equipment, slipped off his gloves, and grabbed his keys. No one said a word as he headed for the door, leaving his experiment unfinished. Carlos knew one of them would clean it up for him. Most of his team had lived in Night Vale longer than he had, and they cared about Cecil too. They would cover for him while he went to check on him.

His car took several moments to start up, leaving him frustrated at the delay. When it finally groaned into life, the radio came on immediately, letting out a demon-like shriek that he recognized as the meow of the station pet, Khoshekh the cat. His horror grew as Khoshekh's shrieking faded to a pathetic mew. "_Wha - no, no no! Khoshekh!_" Cecil's agonized cry tore at his heart. "_What have you done to my cat, you monster?!_" There was some fumbling, then Cecil shouted, "_Jeremy, take us to the weather. You come here you son of a -!_"

As the weather started, Carlos slammed on the gas a little harder than perhaps was needed. The car shot off, taking him out of the parking lot and onto the road, which was thankfully fairly clear of cars. As he drove, he took no notice of the various stop signs he encountered. Since he'd arrived in Night Vale, he'd been as observant as he could about the various oddities, which was of course his job as a scientist. This had the added bonus of him getting several marks on his Observant Citizen card. Carlos had enough marks to grant him stop sign immunity for quite some time. Normally, he would have argued against how nonsensical the notion of some people using stop signs and some not was, but today, he didn't even give the red signs a second glance. He needed to get to Cecil.

The weather was still going when Carlos came up to an intersection with a stoplight. Reluctantly, he slowed the car to a halt. He tapped his fingers impatiently against the steering wheel as he waited.  
As the red light droned on, the weather ended, and Cecil's voice sounded again, dull and subdued. That scared Carlos more than his fury before the weather. "_Listeners, oh God listeners, Khoshekh has been hurt. Very badly._" Carlos could hear the pain laced in Cecil's tone. He'd never met Khoshekh personally, but he knew how much that cat meant to his Cecil.

The radio host continued, "_Animal control came and took him to a hospital._" Carlos hesitated, then made a quick decision, switching his turn signal to go left. He'd find Cecil there, he knew. There was no way Cecil would stick around the radio station longer than he has to. Not when his baby boy needed him.

Carlos's fingers tightened over the steering wheel, teeth clenching as anger surged up inside him. It was an anger deeper than anything he'd felt before, more than he'd ever thought he could feel. Before it might have scared him, how much that anger could fill him up and leave him feeling ready to burst. Now, it just felt natural. This was what happened when family was threatened.

His anger wasn't solely for Khoshekh. As much as he adored hearing Cecil talk about that cat, he wouldn't be moved to this much anger for a cat he never met. But for Cecil, he would lay waste to armies if he had to. Whatever that thing had been, it had gone after Cecil first. It had bitten him, it had tried to hurt him, maybe even tried to kill him. It had only hurt Khoshekh when the cat got in the way of Cecil. Khoshekh was the one who had gotten hurt, but Carlos was almost certain that Cecil had been it's real target. And that was unacceptable.

It took a good twenty minutes to reach the animal hospital. Carlos knew Cecil would have beaten him there; the radio station was much closer to the hospital than the lab was. He turned sharply into the driveway, pulling into the first parking spot he saw and practically jumping out of the car the minute the keys were out of the ignition.

The receptionist looked up in surprise when he walked through the doors, but her surprise soon softened into understanding. "You're Carlos the Scientist, aren't you?" she asked softly.

Even in the midst of his worry and anger, Carlos managed a weak smile of amusement. One of the consequences of being the boyfriend of the community radio host was that absolutely everyone knew who you were. "That's right," he answered.

She nodded once in understanding. "You're here to see Khoshekh." The young woman gestured to a door leading to a hallway, telling him, "First door on your left. Cecil's already there." She hesitated, then lowered her voice as she added, "I'm sorry about what happened. Everyone in here is rooting for Khoshekh." Carlos gave her a tight smile, then turned and headed to the door she had indicated.

He found Cecil crouching by a row of cages, all containing various creatures that ranged from semi-normal looking dogs and cats to creatures that could only very uncertainly be placed under the category of "animal." He started to say something to get Cecil's attention, but after a moment, he stopped, taking a moment to just drink in the sight of him. The radio host was facing away from him, crouched down with one hand on the ground and the other reaching through the bars of the cage in front of him. One of his pant legs was torn, and red blood crusted along the edges of the tear. Carlos couldn't get a good look at the wound from his angle. But he didn't care. All he cared about was that Cecil was in front of him, alive, he was still there, he hadn't lost him. He was almost scared by the intense rush of relief that brought him. Since when had one person come to matter so much to him, that the thought of losing him left him trembling?

After a few moments, he called out quietly, "Cecil?"

His boyfriend turned around sharply, looking at him in surprise. "Carlos? He started to stand, but a plaintive mew sounded from the cage when he started to move his hand away, so he just stayed awkwardly crouching, one hand on the cage. He used the other to hastily wipe the tears from his face. "What, um what are you doing here?" he asked quickly.

Cecil was trying to cover it up, but Carlos could see the devastation in his expression. It was heartbreaking to see. Cecil's baby boy had been hurt, deliberately attacked, and Cecil was clearly having trouble coming to terms with it. Carlos couldn't blame him. No one should have to deal with something like that. "I was listening to your show," he explained. "I heard what happened. I figured you would be here. It seemed the most likely outcome, given the circumstances." He mentally berated himself for slipping back into the scientific tone he had whenever things got too emotional. Cecil needed him to be comforting right now, not distant.

Looking somewhat awkward, Cecil just managed a simple, "Yeah," in response. Carlos longed to say something, anything to comfort him, but he knew it wouldn't help. He didn't have his boyfriend's gift with words. Even if he had, he had a feeling that there weren't any words that could heal a hurt like this. So instead, he looked past Cecil, peering into the cage. He'd never actually met Khoshekh himself, so he was a little curious to see what the cat was like. "Is this Khoshekh?" he asked, trying to keep his tone light, for Cecil's sake. "I've never actually met him." There was again, being too logical, stating the obvious.

Cecil nodded, sniffling slightly as he answered, "Yeah, this is him. Come say hi." He gestured for Carlos to join him, turning back to look at the cat.

Carlos crossed the room to crouch beside Cecil, peering into the cage. He'd known from the descriptions that Cecil had given him that Khoshekh wasn't necessarily going to fit any pre-conceieved notions of what a cat should be. That aspect didn't disappoint. Khoshekh was a good bit larger than a cat should be, more the size of a small dog than a cat. He had strange tabby markings, glowing eyes that didn't have any discernible pupil, spine ridges, and strange tendrils. All in all, however, he fit the general shape of a cat more than Carlos had been expecting.

After getting over the initial shock of his appearance, Carlos began to take in the extent of Khoshekh's injuries. The cat was simply covered in bandages. There seemed to be more bandage than fur, and there seemed to be parts of him missing. The cat was lying down, head lifted up groggily. It didn't even seem to have the strength to keep it's head up without wobbling. Carlos glanced over the bandaged areas, taking note of where the injuries were and how serious they seemed to be. Beside him, Cecil watched him, seeming worried, but too scared to ask what Carlos was thinking. Carlos had no intention of voicing his concerns. Cecil was worried enough about Khoshekh as it was.

Khoshekh glanced at him, eyes narrowing, head wobbling uncertainly. He didn't seem to know whether to trust this new man. Carlos didn't dare lift his hand to the cage, for fear of spooking the already-wary cat. "Hi, Khoshekh," he said as gently as he could.

After a few moments, Cecil cleared his throat, deliberately loud. "Here, I'll let him know he can trust you." The radio host reached for his boyfriend's hand, guiding it to the cage. They both reached their fingers through the bars. "Come on Khoshekh," Cecil encouraged. "Carlos is a friend." Khoshekh watched them for a moment, eyes narrowed, before reaching out delicately with his muzzle, nose sniffing cautiously. He flinched slightly when his nose touched Carlos's fingers, but after a moment of deliberation, he seemed to decide that Carlos was alright. The cat rubbed his cheek against the new man's fingers, purring weakly.

Carlos smiled softly. He wasn't much one for pets, but having this cat decide to trust him was oddly touching. It was easy to see why Cecil adored him so much. He nudged the cat gently on the cheek, careful to avoid any of the bandages. Khoshekh leaned into his touch, giving a weak sort of purr.

After a few moments, Carlos turned to look at Cecil. He was shocked to see just how defeated the radio host looked when he thought Carlos wasn't watching. There was just something so heartbreakingly vulnerable about Cecil's expression. Gone was the fire and anger he'd displayed at the end of his broadcast. All of his will to fight seemed to have been drained out of him, leaving him looking lost as a child. Carlos felt something in his throat clench at the sight. "Oh, Cecil," he breathed. He reached toward Cecil, pulling him toward him, just holding him.

Cecil stiffened in surprise for a moment, then went totally limp, melting into Carlos's embrace. The radio host reached an arm around Carlos's back, clutching at a handful of labcoat as he sobbed into Carlos's shoulder. Carlos just held him, rubbing a hand soothingly along Cecil's back, humming quietly. He tried to act calm, for Cecil's sake, but he needed this just as much as Cecil did. He could've lost Cecil today. He nearly had. Whatever Strexcorp had been planning with that Strexpet, it had been targeted at Cecil. And this probably wasn't the end of it. They would try again. They would try to take his Cecil from him.

Instinctively, he clutched Cecil a little tighter, pulling him closer. Something steely formed in his chest. They would try again, but he wouldn't let them. Cecil wanted vengeance for Khoshekh, and Carlos would happily stand beside him. He would tear Strexcorp to the ground for what they had done, and what they had tried to do.

After a few minutes, Cecil's sobs began to subside, and his trembling faded. But he didn't pull back from Carlos's embrace. Instead he just stayed there, his cheek resting against Carlos's shoulder. "Thanks for being here," he mumbled quietly into Carlos's shoulder.

Carlos felt a lump in his throat. "Of course, my love," he said quietly. Once again, he found himself marveling at how this one person had come to mean the world to him. On an impulse, he reached for the hand Cecil had resting on the cage, Cecil's long, elegant fingers entwining with his. The gesture felt strong. It felt defiant in the face of whatever might come next. A promise of vengeance well deserved, and a havoc to be wreaked. A promise to stand together. Whatever came next, they would do it together.

Khoshekh purred again, and this time it was a little louder, sounding more like a soul screaming in torment than the weak sound it had been moments before. Carlos smiled slightly at the sound of it. In a few minutes, he would suggest taking Khoshekh home with them, for however long the cat needed to recover. They would discuss how they could work their schedules around the cat, when they could bring him home, whether they would need to make the house more accessible to the injured cat. They would plan their vengeance. But for right now, he just held his Cecil, and listened to the sound of a soul screaming in torment.

* * *

It's late, so please excuse the quality, particularly of the ending. I just wanted to get it done.

Since everyone else is doing their post-The Visitor fics from Carlos's point of view, I figured I'd jump on the bandwagon and write the same scene from Carlos's point of view.


End file.
